As we enter the spring, virtually everyone on the Washington Nationals roster has a lot to prove. This team is very short on proven raw materials. However, there are three players that fans should pay close attention to. Cade Cavalli, Dylan Crews and Luis Perales have a lot to prove in 2025, and I’ll be keeping a close eye on them this spring.
Can Cavalli put it together:
Cade Cavalli is the player I’m most fascinated by. After the MacKenzie Gore trade, he appears to be the de facto ace. He had a bumpy road back from Tommy John Surgery but showed flashes of elite potential last season. In his 10 MLB starts, Cavalli starts posted a respectable 4.25 ERA.
I think he can get a lot better. His stuff is rotation caliber and he throws a lot of strikes. However, his execution and command aren’t great. However, with the new pitching development team and a fully healthy offseason, Cavalli could improve that. As the 2025 season progressed, he made some adjustments that helped him become an effective MLB pitcher.
However, there is room for much more. His fastball averages 97 MPH and he pairs it with a great power curveball. The curve averaged 86 MPH and generated smells like a 40% clip. He used the curve more than 30% of the time, which makes the high odor number even more impressive.
Despite being in the 72nd percentile for whiffs, Cavalli struck out just 18.3% of batters. That was in the 18th percentile. There’s no way a pitcher with Cavalli’s stuff is going to strike out among 20% of batters. This spring, fans should see Cavalli’s two-strike execution. If new pitching coach Simon Mathews can improve Cavalli’s ability to put hitters away, he will have a great season.
If I had to guess, Cade Cavalli will be the Nats Opening Day starter. The fact that a pitcher with 11 MLB appearances is the Nats Opening Day starter says a lot about the state of the rotation. However, Cavalli has a chance to be great, he’s just unproven.
Can Dylan Crews live up to the hype:
Coming out of LSU, Dylan Crews was one of the most hyped baseball players of the past decade. Along with his teammate Paul Skenes, Crews helped the LSU Tigers win the National Championship. Since leaving LSU, Skenes and Crews have taken very different paths.
While Skenes won his first Cy Young award in 2025, Crews struggled to find his feet. Crews hit just .208 with a .632 OPS last year. There were long stretches in which the former Golden Spikes winner looked lost at the plate.
Coming out of college, Crews was supposed to be a can’t-miss prospect. Skenes and Wyatt Langford may have had more upside, but Crews was the one who had no chance of going bust. So far that has not been the case. Crews, one of the most decorated college baseball players ever, is not the same player in the MLB.
Even in the minors, Crews didn’t dominate like he was expected to. He was good, but never elitist. The Crews didn’t set the minor leagues on fire like Wyatt Langford did. He was even more exposed in the MLB. His suboptimal angles were a problem. Crews hits the ball too much on the ground and doesn’t use his strength.
Crews was also sniffing way too much in 2025. His issues with spin had been there for a while, but he even whiffed on fastballs. Crews was an elite fastball hitter even during his up-and-down MLB tenure in 2024. That wasn’t the case last year.
Although Crews’ season was interrupted by injury, his performances were still concerning. He needs to get back to crushing fastballs. Hopefully the new coaching staff can help Crews rebuild his confidence. This is the first time Crews has ever failed, so I’m curious to see how he bounces back. Spring Training will be our first chance to see what adjustments Crews has made.
Can Luis Perales throw enough punches:
The prospect I’m most curious about this spring is Luis Perales, who the Nats acquired from the Red Sox this offseason. Paul Toboni signed a rare prospect in a prospect trade with his old club in December. He sent high floor Jake Bennett to the Red Sox for Perales, who is riskier but has a much higher ceiling.
Perales blew out his elbow during his breakout 2024 season. He had to undergo Tommy John surgery and missed the rest of 2024 and most of 2025. Perales returned in late 2025, making a few appearances in the minors.
However, most of his action came in the Arizona Fall League. The results were interesting. His speed was actually better than ever, hitting almost 99 MPH. However, Perales had trouble finding the offensive zone. In 11.1 innings, he struckout 19 batters, but walked 11.
It’s not unusual for pitchers coming back from TJ to have trouble with command at first. They haven’t played competitive games in over a year, so there is some rust. These throwers are also adjusting to their new elbow. As throwers get further away from the operation, command usually improves.
Perales showed it much improved command in his breakout 2024 season, but had some control questions before that. Command will always be a question mark for the flamethrower, but as long as he’s near the strike zone, the stuff will play.
I’ll be watching Perales closely to see what that check looks like. If the 2024 level is reached again, he could be a frontman of the rotation starter. However, he has a chance to be a nasty reliever. His injury history, smaller frame and control point to a bullpen role, but he also has a chance to start.
It will be interesting to see what the Nats do with him. If they move him to the bullpen, he could be in the big leagues very quickly. However, if they want to develop him further as a starter, it will take longer. Either way, Perales should start next season at Triple-A. If Toboni wants to rip him into the bullpen, Luis Perales could be the Nats closer by season’s end.
There are more players we could highlight, but these are the three that stand out for me. All three have so much to prove this year, but they also have a big advantage. 2026 will be a year in which these young players will have to prove themselves. With Paul Toboni improving the farming system, these guys can be replaced if they don’t perform.
#Washington #Nationals #players #excited #Spring #Training